Strange praises ruling against health care law

A 2010 file photo provided by the Strange campaign shows Alabama Attorney Gen. Luther Strange. Strange is recommending that the Legislature repeal some portions of the state's tough new immigration law that have been put on hold by federal courts and clarify some others. In a letter Dec. 1, 2011 to legislative leaders, Attorney General Luther Strange recommended repealing a section that makes it a crime for an illegal immigrant to fail to carry registration documents. He also suggested repealing the requirement that public schools collect information on the immigration status of students. He said both sections have been put on hold temporarily by federal courts. Strange said the proposed changes would help law enforcement and remove burdens on law-abiding citizens. (AP Photo/Strange campaign, File)

Strange says he is proud to have joined other Republican attorneys general who opposed the law before an appeals court in Washington.

The divided court ruled Tuesday that federal subsidies to help millions of low and middle-income people pay insurance premiums apply only in states that set up their own insurance markets under the law. A federal court in Virginia unanimously ruled the opposite way.

Alabama is among the states that didn’t set up an exchange, and the Washington decision means residents may no longer be eligible for federal aid to make insurance more affordable.

Strange says the decision could cripple the entire law, which he opposes.

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